April DORE L DORE 2017/5777

April 2017/5777

This year’s Passo-ver Seders with Hillel marked the largest events our organization has ever held, with over 500 students in attendance across the two nights of Seders. We gave students a wide

array of Seder options in order to make everyone feel at home with Vanderbilt Hil-lel, including options specifically for first years, seniors, members of Greek life or-ganizations, and even Seders themed around celebrating Jewish celebrities. I remember my first Passover at Vander-bilt, which was also my first Passover away from home, and I was worried that it wouldn’t be the same. Looking back four years later, I know that I have found anoth-er Passover home here in Nashville and I look forward to Passover with Hillel every year as a chance to celebrate with my

Hillel family. Even last spring, when I was studying abroad in Scotland, I still ended up spending the first nights of Passover with other members of Vandy Hillel who were also studying in Europe, giving me a sense of home, even on the other side of the globe. This year, I was so happy to see so many members of our campus community come together to celebrate Passover. Not only did we give Jewish students the chance to celebrate together, but we also had a num-ber of non-Jewish students in attendance who had the chance to learn about our Passover rituals and traditions. Helping to lead the senior Seder on the second night of Passover this year was somewhat bittersweet--I loved spending the evening with all of the friends I’ve made through Hillel over these past four years, but it made me realize how much I will miss them and Vandy Hillel as well when I graduate in May.

When I got to campus four years ago, I wasn’t sure where I would fit in, but now I leave know-ing that I have found another Jewish home at Hillel, and I feel this sense of community so strongly at Passover.

Looking forward to my post-graduation move to Washington DC, I am sure that no matter where I am--Nashville, Washington, or even Scotland--I will have Hillel family around to celebrate moments in Jewish life, like Passover, with me.

Ben Schulman Turns 100

2

Challah for Hunger 3

Community Seder with Yavila McCoy

3

Tuesday Schmoozeday

3

Spring Break in Costa Rica: Pura Vida!

4

Falafel at Midnight 4

Senior Initiative 4

Vol. 9, No. 3

Editor-in-Chief:

Hannah Peikes

Vanderbilt Hillel 2421 Vanderbilt Place Nashville, TN 37212

615-322-8376 www.vuhillel.org

’DORE L’DORE From One Generation of Commodores to the Next

Vanderbilt Hillel kicked off our participation in the Grinspoon Foundation’s Life and Legacy cam-paign with a lead gift from Leslie and Russ (B.A. ‘79) Robinson, of Houston, Texas. The Robin-sons’ bequest will establish an endowment that will provide for the religious, social, and educa-tional needs of Jewish students on campus in perpetuity.

Russ, a brother in the ZBT fraternity, and Leslie have been longtime supporters of Jewish causes and Vanderbilt. Russ has served on Vanderbilt Hillel’s Board of Directors, as well as the chair of our Board of Governors. He also served on Hillel International’s Board, and is currently on the board of the Jewish Federation of Greater Hou-ston and the national Board of Moshe House.

Nashville was recently named site for the Life and Legacy campaign, joining 35 other communities around the country. The program is coordinated by the Jewish Federation of Nashville and Middle Tennessee, and Vanderbilt Hillel is one of 13 lo-cal organizations participating in the Nashville campaign.

Organizations that successfully reach the re-quired threshold will receive up to $22,500 in un-restricted funds, as well as specialized training in how to maximize their success in asking for and utilizing endowment gifts. They are also giving help in creating individualized plans, including a marketing campaign and case statement for the organization.

For more information, please email [email protected]

Life & Legacy Ari Dubin, Executive Director

Passover 2017 Caleb Hausman, Student President

PAGE 2

Ben Schulman Celebrates 100th Birthday Spencer Kallor

The Vanderbilt Hillel community is honored to host a 100th birthday celebration the weekend of Jan. 19-22 for Ben Schulman, the benefactor who spearheaded the development of the university building that bears his name and is the center of Jewish life on the Vanderbilt campus.

Spencer Kallor, a junior at Vanderbilt’s School of Engineer-ing and Hillel’s student body treasurer, had the chance to chat with Ben to talk about life at Vanderbilt, memories from the Navy, and a well-lived 100 years. Spencer: Thank you so much for taking the time to chat with us tonight. What are some of your favorite memories when you were in school at Vanderbilt? Ben: I was on 33rd Ave. I was lucky that I lived so close. I remember taking drives with Dinah Shore in her flashy blue convertible. I was a member of the Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraterni-ty and we always had something going on. It was a very good social life at Vanderbilt. I participated in that as much as possible. I got plenty of exercise on the track team, where I ran the mile. Also, I came to most of the football games. After the game, there was always a big blowout in the Old Gym. I still have great admiration for the school and it helped me get into the Navy. Vanderbilt must have taught me pretty well, because while in the Navy I made rapid progress, being promoted to lieutenant commander in 4 years. Spencer: Let’s talk about life after Vanderbilt. When you first started the Schulman Mobile Video and Schulman Video Center, did you ever anticipate the impact of television in our society? Ben: I was a real novice when I first started in the television industry- I got into it at the time when technology was chang-ing. One of the reasons we succeeded in our first year was because we had cutting edge technology. The first year of ESPN’s existence, Schulman Mobile Video broadcast all its west coast sporting events. A year later, we broadcast our first Super Bowl. It was for CBS and was at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. When I first entered the venture, I knew there was need for broadcasting equipment and technology. I’m

still working at the Schulman Mobile Center and still run my television company. Spencer: With all your experiences after Vanderbilt, what piece of advice would you recommend to a current college student? Ben: Go very heavy on mathematics. Mathematics makes you versatile and helps you understand a lot of different of industries. And, it helps get a well-paying job. Spencer: Tell us about your family. Ben: In the early 1950s, my wife, Ruby, and I adopted David in Boston, and soon afterwards, we adopted Karen. Then, in 1954 we travelled to Austria to adopt our daughter Ellen. Finally, in 1956, shortly after the Hungarian uprising, we adopted twin boys, Henry and Richard. In 1987, my son Da-vid, at too young an age, passed away. Although he did not attend Northeastern, I established a legacy for him at his grandfather’s alma mater. Spencer: We’ve talked about school, your military career, Schulman Mobile Video, and your family. What are some things you enjoy doing? I enjoy golf and acquiring and appreciating great works of art. And, I never pass up a cold beer on a hot day. My wife, Ruby, passed away in 1996. Now, I have this girlfriend, Jan, who takes good care of me and makes me jump through the hoops. Spencer: Lastly, what is your hope for the future of the Ben Schulman Center for Jewish Life? Ben: At Vanderbilt, the Jewish involvement has increased so spectacularly. Of course, that makes me proud, and I hope it continues to flourish. I am happy that the Center has become a favorite of students of all denominations. Spencer: Ben, thank you so much again for your time. It was a truly a pleasure.

Ben: Thank you. I’m very moved to be honored by the Van-

derbilt gang.

Hillel President, Caleb Hausman presents Ben Schulman with a birthday gift

’DORE L ’DORE Page 3

Challah for Hunger Yamila Saiegh

Challah for Hunger is a national organi-zation, and our chapter was founded right before I started Vanderbilt in 2015.

Every other Thursday we meet in up-stairs Hillel to bake and braid challah. Then on Friday we sell the challah to the general Vanderbilt student body and all the money raised goes to feed the hungry through a couple different organizations. Very often we sell chal-lah to people that have never even heard of it before. It's honestly incredi-ble to be able to show them part of our Jewish culture and expose them to something that is so special to me. I joined Challah for Hunger practically as soon as I started Vanderbilt and it's been such an important part of my Vanderbilt experience. Through this

club, I've made amazing friends and unforgettable memories. Thanks to Challah for Hunger, I know that I'm making some sort of impact both on campus and throughout the Nashville community.

Tuesday Schmoozeday Rachel Gilfarb, VP of Religious Life

This March, Hillel partnered with the Jewish Federation of Nashville and Middle Tennessee for their annual community Seder. This Seder was co-hosted with the Nashville Organization for Action and Hope (NOAH), a multi-ethnic and interdenominational faith-led coalition. The theme of the Seder was promoting social justice in Nashville and the larger community.

Yavilah McCoy, an African-American Jewish social justice activist and leader was the keynote speaker at the Seder. She spoke about identity and how to

build bridges within and outside of our community.

In her remarks, she discussed the pow-er of Exodus, as it relates to modern struggles for freedom. "Pharaoh didn't end in Egypt. There are many Phar-aohs still with us." She encouraged Nashville’s Jewish community to draw upon Jewish values as we seek justice. More than forty Vanderbilt students attended this beautiful event.

Tuesday Schmoozeday is a lecture series in which the Jewish Life Commit-tee invites people ranging from faculty at Vanderbilt to rabbis in the Nashville community to come and speak to pri-marily undergraduate students one Tuesday evening a month. Each Schmoozeday covers a topic and that topic’s intersection with Judaism, ac-companied by cookies and coffee or vegetarian PF Changs. Last semester, we piloted the series with a few local guest lecturers. Our first Schmoozeday ever concerned the intersection of hu-mor and Judaism. Dr. Judy Klass, a professor from the Jewish Studies De-partment, discussed Biblical humor all the way up to Sarah Silverman. The Jewish Life Committee hosted a panel the following month on the intersection of Judaism and Feminism, where two rebbetzins and a female rabbi spoke to how they incorporate Judaism into their views of feminism and vice versa. Dur-

ing our last Schmoozeday of the fall semester, Rabbi Phil Lieberman led a discussion about Jewish mysticism and magic. Hillel’s Student Executive Board was so proud of the program that we decided to continue this lecture series into the spring semester!

Fast forward to now and we have suc-cessfully completed another semester of Schmoozeday. The Jewish Life Com-mittee was excited to welcome Marty

Singer, who schmoozed with us about what Jewish life was like at Vanderbilt when he attended in the 1970s. Schmoozeday went mobile and attend-ed a seder at the Gordon Jewish Com-munity Center where Yavilah McCoy discussed social action and Judaism. Next, we hosted Dr. Lenn Goodman of the Jewish Studies Department who taught us about Maimonides and his role in Jewish history. We wrapped up the semester with Dana Schwartz, a Vanderbilt alum, who played soccer in Israel for three years before returning to the states to work at various start-up companies.

With every Tuesday Schmoozeday, we have the opportunity to engage in dis-

cussions that we would never be able to have without this lecture series.

Community Relations Seder with Yavila McCoy Gregory Bernstein

Staff

Ari Dubin, Executive Director

Lauren Silverman, Programming Director

Zoe Kress, Springboard Innovation Fellow

Max Ryabinin, Escoll Family Jewish Agency Israel Fellow to Israel

Debby Wiston, Director of Operations

Valerie Landa, Accountant

Executive Board

Caleb Hausman, Student President

Dara Kotek, VP of Programming

Jackie Eissman, Co-VP of Membership

Andrea Lieberman, Co-VP of Membership

Rachel Gilfarb, VP of Religious Life

Matthew Deutch, VP of Israel Affairs

Hannah Peikes, Secretary

Spencer Kallor, Treasurer

Program Board

Dara Kotek Haley Brecher Jenna Comisar

Bradley Faskowitz Phil Goldberg

Danielle Honigstein Leah Koffler Alli Kornrich Nicole Levine Jonah Mishkel Jenna Oratz

Will Parmacek Yamila Saiegh Erika Slepian

Olivia Solow-Niederman Samantha Silberberg

Robert Tabachnik Gideon Ticho

Sydney Wasserman Abby Weiss

Jewish Life Committee

Rachel Gilfarb Gregory Bernstein

Max Engel Bradley Faskowitz

Emily Groff Stephen Reisner

Hannah Smilansky Evan Suzman

Max Zirin-Hyman

‘Dores for Israel

Matthew Deutch Omri Bein

Jude Cohen Leah Field

Sydney Hanan Brandon Paikoff Dylan Rosenfield

Josie Roth Max Zirin-Hyman

Aviv Trip to Costa Rica: Pura Vida! Sydney Hanan

Class of ‘17: Getting Ready and Having Fun Renee Lewis, Senior Leadership Initiative

With graduation quickly approaching, the senior class at Hillel has been busy trying to complete our Nashville bucket lists. For the past year, we have spent time together, exploring all of Nashville’s treasures and making some final great memories.

Senior Leadership Initiative is a committee of seniors who plan fun, engaging, and meaningful events for Hillel seniors. The committee is composed of students who have been very involved in Hillel over the past four years and are committed to en-suring that the bond between Hillel and the senior class is an enduring one.

As part of a generous grant from the Jew-ish Federation of Nashville and Middle Ten-nessee we have planned various brunches, a pedal tavern, a night at Sips and Strokes,

a trip to the 21+ night at the Adventure Sci-ence Center, a tour of the Yazoo Brewery, and more.

I have loved participating in this initiative and would highly recommend it to Hillel Seniors! It is a great way to stay involved and experience all that Nashville has to offer. Everyone on the initiative is extremely grateful for the opportunity to spend time with one another before we graduate.

‘Dores for Israel hosted its semi-annual event, Falafel at Midnight, on Saturday, March 25. The night was a resounding suc-cess, with approximately 120 students con-vening on Hillel for great food and conversation. The late night event included warm falafel, pita, hum-mus, and Israeli salad coupled with free t-shirts, authentic Israeli music, and the decorating of the Hillel lobby with banners and pictures.

The entire DFI board was thrilled to spend late Saturday night inviting people into the building we call home and promoting the State of Israel.

Overall, it was a great way for the club to expand its reach and engage

with students who do not necessarily come to Hillel events often. Until next year!

Matthew Deutch, VP of Israel Affairs

Falafel at Midnight

Going to Costa Rica with Hillel was the best way to spend spring break. Although the trip was off to a rocky start with several delays, three flights, and five airports, we all had so many amazing experiences.

Our trip had the perfect balance between getting to know the Jewish community, com-pleting community service projects, and doing fun local activities. We started in Mon-tezuma, a small beach town, where we fixed an old park, cleaned up a school, did a Pu-rim play at a preschool, learned about sea turtles, and ate at our favorite restaurant, B Bar.

Then, we went to San José, and along the way, we stopped to go ziplining through the forest. Once we got to the city, we did a walking tour, shopped, got a taste of au-thentic Costa Rican nightlife, and celebrated

Purim at the local synagogue. The best part, though, was making new friends and be-coming so much closer with everyone that went on the trip.